Modi guarantees Matua citizenship, PM contrasts outreach to crucial refugee community
Telegraph | 27 April 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday sharpened the BJP’s outreach to Matua and other Hindu refugee communities in Bengal, asserting that giving citizenship to displaced Hindus was the party's "historical responsibility" while trying to reassure the crucial Matua electorate amid their mounting anxiety over voter exclusion.
At a rally at Thakurnagar in North 24-Parganas, the spiritual hub of the Matua community, Modi said: “I would like to assure all Matua, Namasudra and other refugee families that you will get citizenship. You will get a permanent address, and you will receive all the documents and rights that every Indian citizen deserves. This is guaranteed.”
Modi repeated that once a BJP government is formed in Bengal, the process of issuing citizenship certificates under the Citizenship Amendment Act would be “fast-tracked”.
His renewed assurance comes amid unease among many in the Matua community who were excluded from electoral rolls during the special intensive revision because they could not be mapped with the 2002 voter list. The situation, compounded by difficulties in furnishing documentary proof required under the CAA application process, has heightened their uncertainty that the BJP now appears keen to address.
In a sharp contrast to this outreach to Hindu refugees, Modi gave a stern warning against "infiltrators". “Today, I want to warn infiltrators who entered Bengal illegally using forged documents... they should leave Bengal and India before April 29. Otherwise, after May 4, each infiltrator will be identified, and Trinamool will not be able to protect them,” he said.
Modi traced the BJP’s stand on refugees to the legacy of the Jana Sangh. “The Bharatiya Jana Sangh leadership understood the pain of Partition and stood by refugees who came from East Bengal with nothing. There was no Jana Sangh government then, but it consistently raised their issues,” he said. “Syama Prasad Mookerjee was a strong advocate of refugees. The BJP carries forward that legacy. Since Partition, we have considered it our historical responsibility to stand by them (refugees). It is in this spirit that the CAA was introduced.”
He added: “You must be cautious about the lies of the Trinamool. Ask yourselves whether those who opposed the CAA truly care about your welfare. Even if someone votes for Trinamool by mistake, it will be an injustice to your forefathers forced to leave their homeland due to religious persecution."
Modi accused the Trinamool government of presiding over what he described as “Maha Jungle Raj”, alleging that women in Bengal have been the worst affected. “Girls have been going missing continuously in Bengal, but the Trinamool government is sleeping.... Once the BJP comes to power after May 4, strict action will be taken against all goons and rapists,” he claimed.
Referring to incidents in Sandeshkhali, he said: “Criminals continued their atrocities while the merciless government supported them. The struggle of women today reflects the same pain, poverty and fight that Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay portrayed years ago in his novel Pather Panchali.”
Praising the state’s youth, he said: “The youth of Bengal are immensely creative. They are kings of creativity. Their music videos and social media content are appreciated widely. I have seen some of them. The BJP will transform this creativity into Bengal’s strength."
At another rally in Haripal, Hooghly, Modi accused Trinamool of obstructing a probe into alleged graft linked to its consultancy firm I-PAC. “Trinamool tried to block the probe and destroy evidence, but the Supreme Court intervened strongly and called it disastrous for democracy,” he claimed.